I Dream of Peaches
by LibbyMay
Summary: An army of dark Fae are attacking Earth so Sarah and Toby, along with a small group of survivors, take to hiding in the forest. After several years of being on the run, a goblin comes through a portal and the group has the chance to plea their case to the Goblin King. Sarah, however, doesn't want Jareth to recognize her for fear he will reject their plea.
1. Green Mist of Morning

**A.N. -** Alright so since I got such a nice response to my first story, I thought I'd start the new month with the first chapter of my next story. This one probably won't be updated as often since this one is a bit more complicated than the other one, but I'll do my best. As usual, the Labyrinth and its characters belong to Jim Henson.

Green Mist of Morning

She opened her eyes, once again forgetting that they would not open to reveal the creamy walls of her room. Instead she found herself looking at the inside of a tent and feeling the protest of her body at being forced to sleep on the ground once again. She took in the five-year-old boy softly snoring in the sleeping bag next to her and smiled. At least she'd been able to keep him safe so far. A frown graced her pretty face as she recalled the events that had led her and her brother to this point.

It had been a summer day, and Sarah Williams had still been fresh with the excitement of being free from school for a few months. As she walked to her house from the bus, she hummed a familiar tune: _I'll paint you mornings of gold, I'll spin you Valentine Evenings..._ She frowned at the memory of the lyrics. Why did she always have to think of _him_? It seemed he never left her thoughts alone, though she knew that he in fact had nothing to do with it. And for the past few months, she hadn't been able to reach any of her friends; Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus didn't come to the mirror when she called anymore. At first, she'd been angry, thinking that _he_ must have somehow stopped them. But then there was the logic of the fact that if he'd really wanted to keep her from her friends he could have done so a long time before that. And there was the confusing disappointment that he never showed up when she called on them, even if to make some snide remark to her. Suddenly, a voice broke into her thoughts of the handsome Goblin King. _Wait, since when was he handsome..._ the logical part of her asked, while the other part of her answered, _Since always._

"Sarah, come quickly, something's happening!" her friend and neighbor Tessa called. The amount of alarm in Tessa's voice made Sarah hurry more than the words themselves.

"Tess, what is it?" Rather than answer her though, her older friend grabbed her by the hand, and dragged her into the living room where the TV was on loud and clear.

"Initial reports from around the globe say that the creatures seem to be prone to nothing as of yet. Extreme caution is advised. If you see anything out of the ordinary, be sure to call 911, follow your emergency family plan, stay in doors. Shelters are being set up as we speak and your local police station dispatchers will have the information for your particular area." Sarah stared stunned at the images on screen, most of them amateur videos, but what the creatures were was unmistakeable. They were beautiful; thin and willowy, with dark skin and black slanted eyes, and long, pointed ears. And they were clearly using magic, though the reporters were saying that the government was calling it energy-based weaponry.

"We have to go," Sarah found herself saying.

"What? Go where?" Tessa asked.

"The woods, somewhere we can hide more easily. Put some clothes, canned food, and drinking water in a duffel bag and I'll come back for you in twenty minutes. I'm gonna go get my family."

Sarah hadn't been able to convince her parents to leave though, they thought they should stay in doors as had been suggested. So without word, she'd gone upstairs, packed a few things, then had gone into her brother's room. Ever since the Labyrinth, she and Toby had been inseparable, even to the point of knowing what the other was thinking sometimes. It should have been weird, but to them it felt natural. He didn't even look up at her as she entered, but she could tell he was crying. "We have to leave, don't we?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry Tobes. Dad and Mom don't see it, they're not coming with us."

"I know." Sometimes she wondered at the fact that he was too smart for a two-year-old. Then again, sometimes she felt too smart to be sixteen. She briefly considered the Labyrinth's influence towards that, then brushed it away as the more pressing matter came back full force. She shoved some of her brother's clothes and a few of his favorite toys into a bag. Suddenly, at a strange urging, she grabbed the thin red leather book that had become so much a part of her off of the shelf. She'd lent it to her brother and read it to him whenever he asked. Shaking her head, she slipped it into her duffel.

"Will we be going back to see our friends?" Toby asked. Before she'd stopped being able to call on them, her friends from the Labyrinth had shown themselves to her brother and he'd instantly loved them just as much as she.

The thought of going back gave Sarah pause. Did she want to go back? _Yes!_ Her subconscious supplied. The better question was did she want to go back and risk running into _him_ again. _Absolutely!_ This time, her eyes widened in surprise. _Since when did you want to see him again so badly?_ She scolded herself. _Since I first laid eyes on him_. She gasped, mentally telling her subconscious to shove it. She turned to Toby and answered, "I don't know, kiddo. Hoggle and the others haven't come through the mirror in a few months and I think what's going on now has something to do with that. We'll just have to keep an eye out for goblins." She and Toby had slipped out of their house without Karen or their dad noticing, but neither of the siblings looked back.

Sarah's memory of that day faded as Toby stirred. "Is it time to get up?" he asked sleepily.

"Yeah, we should get going. I'll go wake Tess while you wash your face." Sarah went into her friend's tent, nudging her gently, and the older woman grumbled about wanting coffee again. The rest of the small camp was waking up as well. There were seven people in the camp, including Sarah and Toby. Tess, Sarah's friend, was older than Sarah by four years. There was Karo, an elderly Japanese man whom everyone viewed as a grandfather. Allison and Jacob, and their two children Vanessa and Bradley. And finally, there was the self-proclaimed leader of the group, Daniel, who was around Sarah's age. Sarah also knew that Daniel had a crush on her, but though she was polite to him, she never flirted. It was Daniel whose voice carried now, from the middle of the camp.

"Alright, everyone, we need to eat then get moving." And though the others felt that he was too young to be telling them what to do, they listened anyway for despite his arrogance, he really did have the best interests at heart.

It was in those quiet moments of packing up the camp that it happened. A flash of light burst through the meadow, causing everyone to look towards the source. Out of thin air stepped a short, brownish creature with long ears and a crooked nose. It had scruffy black hair, and it was wearing what appeared to be armor.

"A goblin!" Toby exclaimed. Sarah froze, for her emotions were mixed. On the one hand, she was thrilled to see a goblin, for that meant she could finally find out what was going on with her friends. On the other hand, she wasn't sure she was ready to face Jareth. Would he hate her for what she'd done three years ago? It looked like she was about to find out...


	2. Choices

**A.N. -** Okay, so I wasn't intending to add another chapter until next week, but inspiration struck, so here we are. Also, I'm borrowing a character I created from my other story because I just like him (though in my other story, Brok is not a High Adviser). Now to post this before my best friend gets home because I have to help her with last minute wedding details...Enjoy!

Choices

The goblin started at Toby's outburst, then sauntered over with narrowed eyes to the group. "Keep it down!" he hissed. "Do you want to call in the whole Dark Army?!" Then he caught a better look at the boy and his eyes widened. _He's Fae marked, but he's here, Above? What does that mean?_ Then he took in the other members of the group until his eyes rested on Sarah. _She's Fae marked too?! Something's up with these two mortals, and I'm gonna find out sooner or later._

Dan made his way forward, as if to show the goblin he was the leader of the group. Sarah noticed that the goblin didn't look too impressed. _Well think of who the goblin's comparing Dan to. It's no contest who would win between _those_ two,_ Sarah giggled to herself, blushing as the image of Jareth popped into her head. Dan spoke up, and Sarah told her mind to can it. "Hello? We mean you no harm, whatever you are, and we hope that you don't mean us harm either."

"Whatever I am?" The goblin asked, a little hurt. "The boy just told you what I am, I'm a goblin. More to the point, my name is Brok and I serve His Majesty as a High Adviser."

"Oh," Dan said, slightly taken aback. "I'm sorry if I offended you, Brok. My name is Dan and these are my fellow travelers. We're trying to hide from those creatures."

"Dark Fae," muttered Sarah, unable to help herself, and though the rest of the group didn't hear her, Brok's ears perked up and his attention strayed to her for a second.

"Hmm," Brok said, "We thought the Dark Ones might have gotten through to the mortal world, but we weren't sure. The passage has been barred."

"How did you get through just now if it's been barred?" Kayo asked.

"The King's been having me test all of the doorways, both well used and forgotten. This is one of the less used ones, so it should have been harder to get through, but perhaps there were other factors involved. I'm not entirely sure myself."

"So why is your King having you come through?" Dan blurted out, trying to gain control of the conversation again.

"To ascertain what was going on here, of which you've just told me. So thank you, you've made my job easier. I'd hate to have to run into one of the Dark Ones, they're just downright nasty." And with that, Brok turned to go. Sarah blinked. Damn, she'd forgotten that tendency of the more intelligent goblins to get right to the point, then be on their way.

"Wait!" Sarah called out, causing Brok to stop and turn her way. There was a knowing look in his eye, a gleam of victory that she couldn't quite place. _He knows something, but what?_ She wondered. She had no time to find out though, she had her brother and her friends to worry about. "Isn't there something His Majesty could do for us?"

Brok cocked his head and seemed to consider for a moment. "Well," he finally said, "you _could_ plead your case to the King. Since he and some of the other Fae are trying to plan a counter-attack, there's a good chance that he'll help you."

"I sense there's a condition to pleading our case," Sarah replied. "So what is it?"

Brok nodded in approval. The young lady was smart, and that bode well for her. "I could take you through the portal with me, and you could plead your case, but you would never be able to come back to the mortal realm."

"What?!" Dan exclaimed. "That's not fair! We don't know anything about how to live in your realm, as you put it." He turned to the others, saying, "I think this goblin's trying to trick us, there's got to be another way to fight."

Fury flooded Sarah at his words. There were some things you just didn't do, and one of them was insulting a goblin! "Why would he trick us, he doesn't have anything to gain from doing that, Dan!" She yelled at him. "We asked for his help, and I'm sure if there was another way, he would have told us. Besides, what choice do we have? I for one would feel a lot safer if we were somewhere where a royal magical being was nearby to help us instead of running around the woods like chickens with our heads cut off."

Brok snickered at that. _She's a goblin defender, I like her! _He thought. To the group he splayed his hands out in the universal gesture of peace, saying, "Lady's right, I've got no reason to harm any of you. So make your choice, but you'd better make it quick cause I ain't sticking around till the Dark Ones find us."

The whole group gathered closer together, talking in hushed tones. Sarah was the first to speak up. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going to go with Brok regardless of what the rest of you want to do. I'm sorry if that seems harsh or selfish, but I have my brother to think about and this seems like the best way to keep him safe. Besides, there's nothing left for me here."

Dan sighed, running his hands through his hair, then said, "While I have my reservations about this plan, I have to agree with you, Sarah. And I'm sorry for what I said earlier, it's just that we don't know if we can trust Brok."

Sarah fixed him with a determined look, replying, "He won't betray us, I promise. Goblins may be pranksters and adept at misdirection but they don't have it within themselves to go back on their word."

Tessa spoke up, "How do you know so much about goblins, Sarah?"

Sarah gave her friend a wry grin and said, "Let's just say I had some first hand experience when I was younger. I'd rather not go into the details of it right now, though."

"Well that settles it for me, I'm in!" Tessa laughed. The others agreed to go as well.

"Looks like we're going with you, Brok," Dan said, turning to the goblin.

"Good, now there are a couple of things I should go over with you. First, the trip through to the other side of the portal might make you mortals a bit woozy. It's not meant for human travel. Secondly, you will have to put in a formal petition to the King in order for him to hear your case. I'll help you do that, but the form is simple enough. Finally, when you do finally get an audience with the King, whatever you do, do _not_ insult him. He's a kind enough leader and he'll hear you out with an open mind, but if you anger him, you might just find yourself bogged."

"Bogged?" Dan asked, a bit bewildered.

"It's awful, don't even ask," Sarah murmured to him, hoping that Brok wouldn't hear.

But Brok did hear, though he chose not to show that he'd heard. _So, she's been to the Underground before. I wonder if that has anything to do with her mark. I'll just have to keep an eye on her and the boy._


	3. Down in the Underground

**A.N.** - As I noted in my other story, my internet has been down for a while, so I apologize for the delayed update. The chapters are getting slightly harder for this story, because I want everything to fall into place in just the right way. However, I hope everyone enjoys it just the same. P.S. - there's a lot more action in this chapter than I had previously planned, and hence it is the longest chapter I've written yet, so I hope it all makes sense.

Down in the Underground

Going through the portal was a strange sensation indeed. Sarah felt slightly disoriented for a second, but the feeling passed quickly. Toby was next to her and smiled, so she assumed he had not experienced anything too horrible. The others, however, were not so lucky. They seemed dizzy and they walked as if drunk. At one point, Dan threw up and Sarah couldn't help the smirk that crossed her features at seeing that. Brok just happened to glance back her way at that point and he wore the same expression. They were traveling through a forested area, but it was more akin to a jungle than the forest the group had been camping in. The air was hot, but not unpleasant, due to the breeze that was blowing. The trail led downwards and it seemed to Sarah that they walked for miles. Finally, she decided to see where they were and she caught up with Brok. Unknown to Sarah, someone was following her.

"How much further is the Goblin City?" she asked.

"Ah ha! I knew it! You've been here before," Brok exclaimed.

Cursing herself for her slip of the tongue, Sarah nevertheless sighed in resignation. "I never said I hadn't been here," she pointed out, "but yes, I've been to the Underground before."

"So what, one of the Fae took you in, but you decided to go back?"

"What? What are you talking about? How many Fae are there exactly?"

Brok eyed her in confusion, replying, "There's lots of Fae. In fact, the whole Fae Council is going to convene as soon as they hear what's going on, that the Dark Ones have escaped. I don't understand though; you're Fae marked, and so's the boy, so who is it that's protecting you?"

"Fae marked? I didn't even know that I _was_ Fae marked. You say it's a protection?"

The goblin scratched his head. "This is just strange. Usually, a Fae approaches a mortal for one of three reasons: one, for a mutually beneficial deal; two, the mortal has crossed the Fae in some way and the Fae issues a challenge; and three, the Fae has fallen in love with the mortal."

"I don't know that any of those apply to me. I don't think I crossed him before, and I doubt he's in love with me. I suppose what happened could be called a mutually beneficial deal, for it certainly helped me to see the selfish person I was becoming."

"So what _did_ happen then that brought you here before?"

"I, er, accidentally wished my brother away – to your King."

Brok gasped loudly, practically shouting, "_You're_ Lady Sarah?!"

"Shhhh! Keep it down, do you want the whole Labyrinth to hear?"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just that this is great! His Majesty will be so pleased to – Oh no, he _won't_ be pleased. He can't know!"

Sarah's heart dropped slightly at that. She'd hoped that maybe enough time had past that Jareth wouldn't be too upset with her reappearance. "I see. He's still upset that I won, then."

"What? No, no, he was_ hoping_ you'd win, even though -. I can't say anything about that though. No, the reason he can't know you're here is because it's too dangerous. A lot of us think that one of the Fae is responsible for releasing the Dark Ones, and there's quite a number of suspects."

"Alright, but it's also dangerous where we came from, I can't go back. Look, is there any way you can make me look different? That way, I can help my friends and the King never has to know who I am exactly."

"Well, there _is_ a way, but you must have to promise me that we'll tell His Majesty the truth when the time is right."

"Absolutely, you have my word. But what about my brother?"

"He's too young to use this particular type of magic on, so I'll just have to think of a way to explain him. I don't think His Majesty will recognize the boy though."  
"There's something I have to ask you Brok. Why does he want to protect Toby and I?"

"I can't tell you much, I'm sorry, it's forbidden. But what I can tell you is that now that you're both back in the Fae realm, you're going to start exhibiting some magic."

"What kind of magic?"

"I'm not sure. It manifests differently in everyone. Alright, well we'd better work that spell on you. We're getting close to the Goblin City."

"That's good, I thought we'd have to go through the Labyrinth itself."

"That's only for the ones who've wished others away."

"What happens to the ones who get wished away? Do they get turned into goblins?"

Brok laughed loudly at that. "So that rumor's still floating around up there then, eh? I suppose it's all for the best, otherwise we'd get swarmed with kids." And that was all Sarah could get out of him on that subject for the moment.

"Look, I'd better tell the others what I have to do, otherwise they might freak out," she said. It was at that moment that the one who'd followed Sarah took off silently. Brok nodded, so she headed back to the others. "Hey everyone, stop for a minute," she called out to them.

"What's up, Sarah?" asked Dan. Something was wrong, she could tell by the tone of his voice, but she didn't have time to question him and frankly, she was getting tired of his attitude lately.

She made the point to wait till everyone was near enough to hear her. "Okay, I have to tell you guys something important. I didn't tell you before because, well, I wasn't sure that we'd ever get here, and now that we are here, you have the right to know the story." Sarah was glad that she'd told Toby what had happened long before this, so that he wouldn't find out this way, with everyone else. He hadn't been upset that she'd wished him away. In fact, he'd claimed that he remembered bits and pieces of being with Jareth, and having fun. "You see, four years ago, I, um, lost Toby to the goblins and had to beat the challenge of making it through the Goblin King's Labyrinth to get him back. Well, I'm worried that if he recognizes me, it might make our plea for assistance more...difficult. So, as a precaution, Brok has offered to alter my appearance." Everyone seemed to take the news in stride, although Sarah noticed that Dan was silent. She really didn't care at that point, however, she'd learned long ago that you can't please everyone. But she also couldn't avoid Dan, unfortunately, as he pulled her aside.

"So just who is this Goblin King and what does he mean to you?" he asked.

"You were there when I just told everyone the story, what else is there to say about it?" Sarah replied, her patience running thin.

"Do you like him?"

"Why do I get the impression that you're jealous, Dan? I mean, come on, I haven't done anything to lead you to believe that I want to become romantic with you, so why are you asking me things like this?"

"Because maybe _I_ want you to be my girlfriend, but you're too focused on your fairy land!"

"Oh really? Well, I think _you're_ obsessed with wanting to be with me when you should be more concerned about keeping everyone in our group alive . After all, you're the one who thinks he's the leader, so maybe you should start acting like it!"

Dan's hand flew out, surprising both of them, and smacking hard on Sarah's cheek. His eyes grew wide, horror at the realization of what he'd just done dawning on him fast. "Oh my God, Sarah, I didn't mean - ."

Fury such as Sarah had never known swept through her like a tidal wave. In an icy tone that had him wincing she cut him off. "Didn't you though? You're acting like a real pig!" It was then that Sarah felt a strange sensation passing through her, much as if she'd stuck her finger in a light socket and Dan began to – change. His ears grew larger and their shape transformed into something more like triangles. Then, his nose grew as well until it was, well a pig's snout.

It seemed Dan was not oblivious to what was happening to him as he felt his new facial features. "What did you do?! I'm hideous! Change me back, immediately, you witch!"

Sarah practically growled her retort, "Be careful, Dan. I've been generous up till now, but I can be cruel." And as Dan was looking at her, his anger quickly dissipated into fear as a look came into her eyes that he'd never seen before. There was almost something alien about them, and true terror gripped him as he backed off quickly, fleeing into the forest.

"You'll regret this!" he called back meekly as he disappeared into the brush.

Exhaustion overtook Sarah as the confrontation ended. She wondered if she should feel badly for what she'd done; after all, she wasn't generally a mean-spirited woman. But then she felt the sting on her cheek and she couldn't find it within herself to feel guilty. The rest of the group gasped when they saw her and asked what had happened. All of them were relieved to hear that Dan had gone.

"So," Brok said, approaching her, "are you ready for me to cast the spell?"

"Yeah, let's do it," she replied.

So everyone gathered around while Brok concentrated on Sarah, mumbling strange words. Sarah could feel the magic transforming her, and she was curious as to what she would look like. Something was strange about it though, for she was starting to feel less human. And then Brok said, "Oh dear, that's not right."

"What? What is it?"

"Well..."

Tess cut in, saying, "It's not horrible Sarah, I mean it will do what you wanted. That King certainly won't recognize you like _this_."

"Somebody hand me a freakin' mirror already," she grumbled. But when Tess tried to give her a makeup mirror, Sarah froze. Her hands were not hands at all...they were paws.


	4. The Crystal Castle

**A.N. -** So yet another chapter here and I just wanted to say a thank you to all my followers, especially MaidMarian17, Honoria Granger, FireShifter, and . Hopefully you all enjoy this latest installment!

The Crystal Castle

A vast, green meadow was overshadowed by the spires of crystal rising as if they had sprung from the earth. This place was known far and wide as the Crystal Castle, where the Fae Council met. The nobility and royalty would not all be present for another week, for some of them were traveling from far away. It was late in the afternoon and a young Fae man with short, spiky brown hair and light green eyes was pacing in the garden. Another Fae male around the same age but with longer, black hair and gray eyes entered the garden from the castle.

"Dres, there you are. You know your uncle is wondering where you are," the darker haired Fae said.

"He doesn't need me in there, Van, and you know it. Aren't you worried about Jinelle? After all, you two are engaged."

"Of course I'm worried, but what do you suggest? Until we have a good idea of where they've taken her, we can't search the whole realm. It would take far too long." It was at this point that the doors to the garden opened again, revealing a female Fae with curly burgundy hair and dark blue eyes.

"Dreslin and Vandorian, the High King is getting impatient," she told them.

"Natira, you look lovely as usual," Van greeted her.

She huffed in slight irritation, replying, "Stop avoiding your duties, you two. Besides, Dreslin's other cousin is here."

Dres seemed to brighten up again, saying, "Well then let's get to it. Perhaps he'll have some new information for us." The three walked into the main hall, where a vast table made of rose quartz was set for a feast. At the head was an imposing figure; a tall, older Fae. His features were sharp, his light blonde hair was graying, and his gaze was disconcerting. One minute his eyes were green, the next instant they were blue, and yet again they would change color to brown. At his right sat an elegant Fae woman with platinum blonde hair and aqua blue eyes. "Uncle Sortovus, Aunt Liselle, we're sorry to have kept you waiting. I'm just worried about Jinelle."

"If anyone should be worried about Jinelle, it should be us," Sortovus answered.

"We grew up together, so we're practically brother and sister."

Another voice, smooth and confident cut through the air. "I can vouch for that, Father, for I was the one raising them while you were leading your army against the wraiths."

"Jareth, my son, so glad you could join us finally," the High King said.

"My High Adviser, Brok, is missing. I sent him on a scouting mission two weeks ago and I've yet to hear back from him. Perhaps the Dark Ones have taken him as well," Jareth frowned.

"Yes, I'm sure a goblin is as important as family," Sortovus spat out angrily.

"The goblins are in my care, and as such it is my duty to make sure they don't come to any harm."

"Hah! I've seen you kick them around and yell at them. Would you do that to your family?"

"You're pushing your boundaries, old man," growled Jareth, his features darkening. "Yes, I have to keep them in line often, for as you know, goblins don't generally tend to be terribly bright and they try my patience."

The two Fae glared at each other for a minute, until the High Queen cut in, saying, "Now calm down, both of you. I'm sure you're both worried equally for our Jinelle. Jareth, you say your goblin adviser is missing. Does that mean you haven't gotten any new information for us?"

"Sadly I haven't. However, I can list the most probable places they would have taken her."

"Alright, let's hear what your thoughts are," Liselle said.

"First, there is Muckbog, a nasty area close to one of their known battle camps that they've been known to use for prisoners. However, Muckbog would also be the hardest to defend on their end. Second is the ruins of Roedankyne, deep in the Golden Forest. We don't know how long they've been planning their return so they might have rebuilt the old castle. However, the giants' presence in the area would definitely be something they would take into account. Then there's Silverhelm, once a Dwarven mine but abandoned after a major shaft collapsed. The only problem with it is that the Dark Ones wouldn't have the first clue on how to reinforce the tunnels so that they wouldn't get buried."

Jareth paused, sighing, and Liselle asked softly, "You haven't told us everything, have you?"

A grim expression came over the Goblin King as he answered, "No, there's one last place that I'm sure we can all guess at, but it's also the most likely one. The Ebony Fortress."

Sortovus spoke up at that point. "But Jareth, the Ebon Mountains are the trolls' domain and has been for almost a century now."

"True, but the Dark Ones would be intimately familiar with the terrain, seeing as how that was the center of their kingdom for so long. The trolls could be surprised easily by an army of former natives to the land."

"Or the Dark Ones bargained with the trolls and made the trolls their allies," Sortovus grumbled.

Jareth gave his father a sharp look as he replied, "You know as well as I do that the Dark Ones don't join forces with anyone. If anything, we ourselves might be able to make allies with the trolls. They've been a neutral kingdom for a while, but perhaps they would be willing to assist us in exchange for their land back once the Dark Ones have been taken care of."

"If you truly believe that the Ebony Fortress is the most likely place where they have Jinelle captive, then you must follow up on your hunch that the trolls will help us. You should leave today. Take whatever resources you must. "

"And what of the Council meeting?"

"I will tell them of our discussion today and of my orders to you. Now, let's eat."

After dinner, Jareth conjured up a crystal ball and sent it to the general of his goblin army, asking for reinforcements to meet with him in Shadeglen, a forest in the center of the realm. Ironically, Shadeglen was the last place where Brok had sent communication from. Jareth hadn't mentioned the message he'd gotten, for it would just complicate matters. It seemed the Dark Ones were attacking the mortals Aboveground, just as was feared. But if Jareth had told his father this, the Fae's forces would be split and weakened. The humans may be under his father's responsibility, but Jareth felt that if the Fae Council could concentrate their efforts to battle the Dark Ones in the Underground, and ultimately find out who was behind their escape, then that would be the best course for protecting the mortal world.

Dreslin's voice cut into Jareth's thoughts. "Hey cousin, I'm going with you."

"As am I," said Vandorian.

Jareth looked the two men over, then nodded. "Very well, I'll be glad for your company. There is one condition, however."

"What's that?" Dres asked.

"You both must follow my orders, no matter what. It's one thing if I get myself injured or captured, but Father would kill me if either of you two were compromised."

"Great! What will we need to do first?"


	5. Separation of Company

**A.N.** - You guys will probably hate me for this chapter, lol. Don't worry though, they will meet in due time; I'm not keeping them apart just because I feel like it. There's a reason for my madness, I swear! So you'll probably be able to guess what Sarah's plan is by the end of this chapter, but I hope to surprise everyone in the way she goes about her plan. Anyhow, that's enough from me for now, otherwise I might give everything away hehe.

Separation of Company

Being lower to the ground was taking some getting used to. The abundant plant life kept hitting Sarah in the face. Then there were the aspects of animal instincts which she wasn't fully prepared for. At one point, she found herself chasing a lizard without thought and then promptly threw it up after swallowing the damned thing. Her brother came up to her, all grins.

"Can you stay like this forever, Sar? I like having a pet. I miss Merlin," the little boy asked hopefully.

"NO," Sarah replied emphatically. "I promise you, though, when I turn back to a normal human Earth person, we'll get a pet." Sarah caught Brok laughing out of the corner of her eye and barked out, "What the hell happened, anyway?"

"Well, I think your own magic counteracted mine in some way. That's probably why you can also still speak as yourself, " Brok answered. "Don't worry though, we'll figure out how to turn you back to yourself. Besides, you insisted that His Majesty not recognize you."

"True," Sarah commented grudgingly. "But a fox?! I'm all furry and I can't pick anything up with these paws."

"Are foxes your favorite animal?"

"No, I like owls."

"Really," Brok commented, eyebrows raised slightly. "That's interesting."

"I think you look adorable," Tess cut in, giggling. Sarah grumbled and it came out as a low growl.

The group continued on as the jungle became less dense. Allison spoke out, asking, "So when do we get to wherever it is that we're going?"

"The Goblin City," supplied Brok. "Once we're out of Shadeglen, this jungle we're in, we should see it. It won't be too much longer now." Suddenly, Brok stopped short. "Wait," he said, his tone betraying a hint of worry.

"What is it?" asked Sarah.

"Something's not right." The goblin sniffed the air while the group stood still. The only warning was the rustling of the brush to their left before several thin, dark figures flew out of the trees at them. "Dark Ones!" Brok cried, unsheathing the sword at his side.

The group was not unarmed, having brought weapons of their own from the homes they'd abandoned. Karo had a hammer, Jacob had a butcher knife, Allison had a hoe, and Tess had a bat. Sarah had had a sword as well, as she liked to collect different types of swords and had grabbed her favorite. However, since she couldn't carry her sword at the moment, she let Karo carry it. They all quickly got into a circle, facing outwards. Sarah quickly pushed Toby into the bushes with her head, telling him to stay hidden and quiet, no matter what. As the creatures came in closer, Sarah could see just how truly beautiful yet terrible the Dark Ones were. Both tall and menacing, with their ashen skin, dark gray eyes, and teeth that were more like fangs, they were also quick and vicious in their attacks. The group was barely holding their own against the brutal creatures, when something happened. Jacob happened to have a second to catch his breath when the weapon in his hand caught his eye. No longer was he holding a mere butcher knife, but a wickedly curved scimitar. He glanced at the others and noticed their weapons had also undergone some improvements. Karo held a warhammer, Allison was utilizing a spear, and Tess was fending off a creature with a mace. "Brok!" Jacob called out. "Are you responsible for this?"

Brok turned his head to see, then shook it, yelling back, "No, that would be the boy!"

And so the tide seemed to turn as the group applied themselves with renewed vigor. But just as they there were only a couple of Dark Ones left, a blast of magic, acting as a force of wind, knocked everyone away from each other. Sarah, being lighter, landed further away than the rest. Meanwhile, a Dark One strode forward towards the confused company. He was obviously a leader, for the two remaining other creatures deferred to him. His skin was even darker than the others, but strangely his hair was red and his eyes were a hazel color. Brok lifted his head and gasped, "Felruun! So _you're_ the one who freed them!"

Felruun smirked and replied, "Well, well, if it isn't the High Advisor, Brok. Tell me; what do you think you're playing at, helping these mortals?"

Brok ignored the jab by saying, "You were always a trouble-maker, even when you were young. The High King will probably have your head, you know."

"Hah! The High King doesn't even know I'm the one who's leading the Dark Ones, now does he? How would you like a personal tour of the new and improved Ebony Fortress?" Brok's face went pale but before he could say anything, Felruun's eyes flitted towards the trees and he frowned. "Damn, you appear to have reinforcements closing in!" He hissed out. Then a malicious smile crept across his face. "I'm not afraid of anyone knowing about me, so you be sure to tell your King what occurred here. Tell all of them, for I and my army are far stronger than what they can defend against. Next time you see me, I'll make sure to put an end to you." He paused, then continued by saying, "Oh, and by the way, let them know I hold the Princess captive." And with that, he disappeared into the jungle.

Sarah had been making her way back to her friends as fast as she could and had laid low while Felruun was talking to Brok. With her new nose, she could smell the direction the foul being had gone. She could also smell that her brother was still hidden in the same spot she'd told him to stay, and she could sense that he was alright. She was about to go to him when a strange instinct told her to do something else, something dangerous and crazy. Would it work? Perhaps there was a reason she looked like she did, she thought. A full out attack on this fortress sounded like suicide, but perhaps a small fox could sneak in unnoticed... She knew her mind was already made up and she didn't have time to tell anyone her plan, but she trusted Brok to look after her brother. She quickly followed the fading scent of the one called Felruun.

As the rest of the group found their way back to each other, the brush parted to reveal three men. Brok's features went from worried to relieved. "Your Majesty, am I glad to see you!"


	6. Out of the Frying Pan

**A.N. -** Okay, as promised, here's the latest chapter and sorry it took so long for the update. It's been a crazy month so far and I hope to have the next update later this week since you all have been so patient for this one (I think my mind was boggled when I saw just how many people are following this story. Thank you all so much!). This chapter was a bit difficult for me but I hope that it turned out alright and that everyone enjoys it!

Out of the Frying Pan

Jareth surveyed the scene before him and couldn't help the small smile of amusement cross his features. "What is this, Brok?" He asked. "Bringing humans into our realm to join our cause, are we?"

"They've come to ask for help. The Dark Ones have infiltrated into the mortal realm, just as we suspected."

Jareth's smile faltered, turning into a frown as he replied, "As powerful as the Fae are, we still don't have the resources to defend _both_ realms."

"Is there any way we can request sanctuary with you, Your Majesty?" Karo asked, feeling that since he was the eldest, it was up to him to take responsibility for the group. "The Dark Ones just attacked us and we'd really rather not still be here should they return."

The Goblin King seemed to ponder for a minute, stroking his chin with his gloved hand. Finally, he spoke, saying, "Since you have asked me so respectfully, I will agree to do this, but there is a condition."

"I'm sure we'd all be willing to do anything within reason."

"The Fae Council will be going to war with the Dark Ones and we'll need every able person to either fight or help in some other way."

Karo looked at the rest of the small band of people and they nodded at him. He knew they felt as he did, that they would rather fight than keep running. "We agree."

"Good, now that that's settled -." But Jareth didn't get to finish his sentence as a five-year old boy came running out of the bushes, his mop of blond hair bouncing wildly.

"Tess! Tess! She's gone!" Cried the boy.

"Whoa little buddy, who's gone?" Tess asked Toby, picking him up.

"My sis!"

"Oh my goodness, you're right! She's not here!" The rest of them murmured in concern, but Jareth was frozen, not having heard anything past the point when the boy had shown up.

It was then that Toby noticed the man staring at him and smiled. "You found him! You found the Goblin King!"

Jareth strode over to Toby in one swift stride and Tess instinctively grasped the boy to her chest, for the look on Jareth's face was intimidating. "_What_ in the Underground is _he_ doing here?!" He practically roared at Brok.

Dres and Van, who were with Jareth, glanced at each other in confusion. "Uh, cousin," Dres asked, "do you know this human?"

"Answer my question, Brok, or you'll find yourself in the Bog before you can blink," Jareth growled lowly, ignoring his cousin for the moment.

"Ah, hahaha, ah, he was with the rest of the group," Brok replied nervously.

"So we're just in the habit of bringing along Fae marked mortals back to the Underground, are we? And yes, Dreslin, I _do_ know this boy, for I'm the one who marked him." Jareth turned his attention back to Toby and asked in a more calm demeanor, "Toby, yes?"

Tess tightened her grip, for she wasn't quite sure what was going on, but Toby looked up at her, saying, "It's okay, Tess, I'm not afraid. Yes, Goblin King, I'm Toby."

"Perhaps _you_ can answer my question, Toby, since my High Adviser seems to be acting the idiot at the moment. Why are you here, with this group of humans?"

"The bad guys were coming for us, so we had to leave. Mom and Dad didn't believe Sar, they stayed behind," he frowned at that memory.

"Who is this Sar?"

"My sister."

Brok shifted nervously. _So much for Sarah wanting to keep her identity a secret,_ he thought. But there was nothing he could have done about it. If he had told Toby to lie about Sarah, and Jareth had found out later, there would have been hell to pay.

"Your _sister_ is here?" asked Jareth, and Brok could have sworn there was steam coming out of the Goblin King's ears.

"Yeah, but she's gone! She was here when the bad guys came, but I can't find her now!" Tears began to fall lightly onto Toby's cheeks. A myriad of emotions, none of them good, ran across Jareth's features

"We have another problem too, Your Majesty," Brok said, trying to focus the King's anger. "Felruun is the one who's behind the escape of the Dark Ones, and he's leading them. He told me that he has the Princess Jinelle captive!"

"That bastard!" Van cried. "Did he say where he had her?"

"He pretty much implied that she was being held in the Ebon Fortress."

"We have to rescue her! Stars only know what torture she's being forced to endure!"

"Yes, it seems we'll have to enter the Ebony Fortress," Jareth replied, his mouth set in a grim line. "I'll send word to my father, so that we can meet the army there." He turned to the group of humans, saying, "If you really wish to honor our bargain, you'll come with us."

"Of course we will," Karo answered. "If they've taken Sarah, we have to help her.

"Brok, there _will_ be consequences but the matter will be dealt with afterward," Jareth glared at the goblin.

Brok gulped, and decided to say something, for he felt he really didn't have anything to lose. "Your Majesty, perhaps the exiled ones can assist us? After all, they would have a stake in helping find her."

"Hmm, yes, perhaps you are right. Very well." Jareth held out his hand and a crystal sphere appeared in the air. Immediately, it grew till it could have encompassed the entire group. He lifted his right hand, then swung the hand down and the sphere dropped quickly, vanishing into the ground. A moment later, the crystal reappeared, and there were two beings inside of it. The crystal itself dissipated, and Jareth spoke to the two beings, "Welcome back, Hoggle and Ludo. I have a task for you, and if you agree to do it, you will no longer be exiles." He frowned then, noticing something, and asked, "Where is Sir Didymus?"

"Bah, he was taken by the Dark Ones," Hoggle replied. "But why should we help you? Maybes we like being exiled and not having to take orders from you."

"Ludo not like it," Ludo commented, and Hoggle shushed him.

Jareth smirked, saying, "Be that as it may, how would you like the chance to rescue not one, but _two_ friends?"

"What other friend is there?"

"You remember the precious Sarah, do you not?"


	7. Infiltration

**A.N. -** I apologize to all the readers of this story for the delayed update; this chapter was giving me a bit of trouble at first. I hope everyone enjoys!

Infiltration

Dusk had settled in, the terrain had steadily risen, until Sarah realized that she was in the mountains. How different this all was compared to the last time she was in the Underground, and frankly she was a little nervous. She'd followed the Dark Fae for hours now and she could see their goal in sight. A towering building which looked as if it had been carved straight out of the mountains. The Ebony Fortress. True to its name, the walls were black. Torches lit up the massive metal doors. She began to inspect the outskirts of the fortress, looking for ways in. It was ironic to her how she finally found her entrance, for she knew that if she were herself again, she never would have smelled the rodents leaving through the grate that was obviously meant for drainage purposes. The odors emanating from the hole were unpleasant, but she'd smelled the Bog of Eternal Stench so she figured she could handle a bit of sewage stink. She squeezed her furry body through the grate bars and began her trek.

At one point, there was a fork in the tunnel with three outlets. She didn't want to waste time going down the wrong path, especially since she didn't know how much time she had to find the Princess. "Which way do I go?" She wondered out loud, not expecting an answer.

"Depends on where you want to get to," a small voice answered, startling her.

"Oh!" She gasped, upon finding a rather large rat peering up at her. "Hello, I wasn't expecting, well, a rat. How did you understand me?"

"First of all, my name is Simon. I don't understand your question though. All animals can understand each other in this realm, so you must have been stuck in a cave your whole life."

"Actually, I'm a human who's been turned into a fox."

"Hah! That's ironic."

"Why do you say that?"

"Nevermind that for now. So where is it that you wanted to go? Personally, I would leave this place if I were you, especially given that you're really human."

"I can't. I have to find the Princess they've captured."

"Which one? They have two."

"Two? How many Fae royalty have they captured?"

"No, there's only one Fae. The other one's the troll Princess."

"Why would the Dark Ones mess around with trolls?"

"The trolls took residence in this fortress after the Dark Ones got beaten the last time. So naturally they wanted their old hunting grounds back and to do that, they had to contend with the trolls. Most of the trolls were able to retreat to the woods of Shadeglen, but the Princess was captured and taken here."

"I'm surprised that the Dark Ones take prisoners at all. They kill any humans they've come into contact with."

"That's because they see themselves as superior to the mortal race. Here, in the Underground, they need hostages to negotiate with."

"Alright so where do I find the Princesses?"

"Take the middle path. That'll lead you right to the dungeon."

"Thanks, I appreciate your help."

"Good luck, you'll need it. By the way, you never introduced yourself and I'd like to know what human is crazy enough to take on the Dark Ones."

"I'm Sarah."

Simon let out a squeak, which made Sarah jump a little. "Are you Lady Sarah, Champion of the Labyrinth?!"

"Geez, word really does spread around here, doesn't it?"

"Everyone who is under the Goblin King's rule knows about you, rats being no exception."

"I didn't realize His Majesty was in charge of the rats."

"You must be careful, Lady Sarah. If you get into a bind in there, just remember your right words."

"I'm not going to make the mistake of wishing my brother away again," she frowned.

Simon shook his head, replying, "There is more than one way to call for His Majesty. Remember." And with that last advice, he left.

"Oh boy, I'm really getting into the thick of it now, aren't I?" Sarah murmured to herself.

As Simon had told her, she took the middle tunnel, which began to lead upward. She knew she was getting closer when she began to hear the murmur of voices. Finally, she reached the opening which was another set of bars set into the rock wall. The voices were clear now, though they were using a soft tone, and Sarah glanced into the room. She was immediately met by the shock of what, or who, was in the cage nearest to her. For there, obviously dead, was the body of a man with the head of a pig. _Guess Dan didn't make it very far._ Sarah gulped but didn't feel any guilt. Dan had made his choice and she wasn't responsible for his actions. She turned to get a look at the other prisoners. She was immediately taken by the young Fae woman who must be the Princess that Felruun had mentioned. The Princess appeared to be sixteen years old, but Sarah knew that Fae aged differently. The woman had long, curly platinum tresses and her build was slender. But it was her eyes which gave Sarah pause, for one was the blue of the ocean while the other was a golden brown. Sarah knew that this Princess was related to Jareth in some way. She tore her gaze from the Fae to take in the next prisoner. This one was also a woman, though she had skin the color of moss, her chestnut hair was bound into braid threaded through bones, and two of her bottom teeth protruded into small tusks at the corners of her mouth. This one must be the troll Princess, Sarah surmised, and she thought the creature quite prettier than she had imagined. There was a third prisoner, an older looking male who was perhaps around Karo's age, assuming he was human. This man was lean but fit, and he had mid-length auburn hair and a goatee to match. Sarah had no clue why the Dark Ones would bother with a man who was obviously not a royal Fae, but perhaps he was a nobleman. There was an air of familiarity about him, though. But the two Princesses where conversing and Sarah's ears perked up.

"I don't see why we can't work together to try and get out of here," the Fae Princess was saying.

"Look, I have no problem teaming up with you to get our asses out of this shit-hole. But the problem remains that we first have to get ourselves out of these cages and that's not going to happen anytime soon. Your magic isn't strong enough to break the magic cast on these bars and I don't use magic so we're between a rock and a hard place."

"You don't have to use such language, you know," the Fae grumbled, pouting.

"I'm a troll. Deal with it, sweet-cakes."

Sarah slid through the grate, revealing herself to the prisoners. "Hey, well what do you know," the troll woman called out, her tone mischievous, "looks like we're getting our rescue after all."

"Actually, that's exactly what I was planning to do," Sarah retorted, causing the troll to take measure of her.

"Nice come-back, foxy, but how do you plan on doing that? You may be able to talk like a person, but that doesn't make you magical."

"Thankfully, I do have a bit of magic. The only problem is that I'm not sure whether I can use it in this form. I only recently acquired my magic so I don't know what my limitations are."

The troll began laughing, saying, "Oh this is rich! Seriously, where did you come from?!"

"Princess Katiana, if you would kindly refrain from insulting our would-be rescuer, I'm certain we can all put our minds together and figure something out." It was the first time that the male prisoner had spoken, but Sarah was dumbfounded.

"Sir Didymus?!"


	8. A Treaty and a Key

**A.N. - ** Sorry to everyone for the delayed update, but it was my birthday at the end of June and the heat has been awful lately. It's hard to focus when your house is like 90 degrees, bleh. Anyway, I had a bit of fun in this chapter, and there's a tad bit of violence so I'm glad I've been sticking with the M rating. Just a note for those of you who are expecting sexy situations in this story: I don't know how detailed I will get with any such occurrences. That being said, however, I have no control of what Jareth may or may not do when he finally meets up with Sarah. _Jareth, put your shirt back on! Seriously, it's distracting!_ Ehem. Now that that's cleared up, on with the story and I hope you enjoy! P. S. - The thing with the fruit is just something I made up. I thought, well, Fae are probably attracted to shiny things and they seem to like fruit, so why not?

A Treaty and a Key

Hoggle grumbled to himself as the group marched along, led by Jareth. "How in the Underground she gets 'erself into these situations, I'll nevers understands." After finding out that they were on their way to try and rescue Sarah, he and Ludo had immediately agreed to the Goblin King's offer. He did tell Jareth, "I ain't givin' her no more peaches!"

The dwarf could have sworn there was a flicker of sadness across the king's face at the comment, but then the flicker was gone as Jareth replied, "She's here of her own free will and therefore I would have no reason to play games with her." That was all Jareth would say on the matter, and Hoggle had to accept that fact.

The company continued on in silence, for they were getting closer to the Ebon Mountains. Suddenly, Jareth stopped them, saying, "Wait, there's something amiss."

It was then that the group was surrounded by creatures who had jumped out of the brush. "Trolls!" Dres cried out. The trolls held spears out to keep the group at a distance.

"King Roac!" Jareth called out. "It is I, Jareth the Goblin King. We met once, a few hundred years ago."

The troll who strolled into view was tall, even by troll standards, with dark brown skin and orange eyes. The tusks at his mouth were curved and carved with symbols. He barred his teeth in a grin as he replied, "Ah, King Jareth, I do remember you. You provided us with weapons in our last skirmish with the centaurs. What brings you to our neck of the hills?"

"We are going to launch an assault on the Ebony Fortress. My sister is being held captive there."

"Is that so? It just so happens that my daughter is also being held there. We were going to attack the Dark Ones as well."

Jareth smirked. Things were lining up nicely. "Perhaps it would be beneficial for both of us to strike up a treaty, to put our forces together to win this war."

Roac's grin grew even wider. "We've never had cause to join forces before, but I agree that the time to do so is right. You've always been a supporter of my people and I would be honored to have you at my side in battle." The two kings shook hands. Then Roac said, "We've done a bit of scouting already. We know that they're holding the prisoners in the lower dungeon. We'll need a way to get our people out before the main battle begins so that the Dark Ones don't have any leverage against us."

Jareth thought for a minute before replying, "I think we might be able to have a way in from beneath the structure of the Fortress. I have with me a Rock Mage. With him, I'm sure we can figure out a winning strategy."

"Let's get to work then."

* * *

Deep in the dungeon, a man in a cage looked around, confused. "I know that voice," he said.

"Sir Didymus, it's me, Sarah. What happened to you?!"

The man perked up as he cried out, "My Lady! Is that really you? And why do you look like me right now?"

"It was a spell. What about you?"

"I suppose it was a spell as well. One minute I was myself, the next minute I had transformed into a human!"

"When did this happen?"

"Earlier today, as a matter of fact."

"Well it certainly would appear that the two spells put upon us are related. I'll have to ask Brok about it later. Now, is there some way to get you guys out of there?"

Katiana spoke up again, saying, "One of the Dark Ones has the key. He's in the guard room just up the stairs. I don't see how you're going to defeat him."

Sarah lifted her chin up and replied, "We'll just see now, won't we."

"Be careful, my Lady," Sir Didymus said. Sarah nodded and crept up the stairs, which was easy enough to do being that she was so light on her paws. She got to the top and peeked around the corner. There was, in fact, a Dark Fae, black eyes and everything. Sarah couldn't help but shiver, but she steeled herself for the task at hand when she caught a glimpse of the key at the creature's waist. She wondered what to do and thought about all her options. If she attacked the creature, there was a good chance that she wouldn't do any real damage and the creature would be able to sound the alarm, so to speak. She also couldn't wait for the creature to fall asleep, for she didn't even know if Fae slept. No, she'd have to be stealthy or use magic in some way. She tried to sense the magic in her, and to discern what she could do with it. She was surprised by the sensations that flowed through her when she focused inward. It wasn't especially powerful, but it was strong. She thought about what she'd done so far with it and realized that she'd transformed people into animals, and one animal into a person, if Sir Didymus' transformation was a part of that magic. She doubted that a Dark Fae would be able to be transformed. She looked around the room until she spotted the bowl of fruit. The peach amongst the fruit brought back fond memories. She blamed Jareth for her addiction she'd had for peaches ever since. It hit her then like a bolt of lightening. Maybe she couldn't transform the Fae directly, but perhaps her best offense was subtlety. She focused her magic on the peach, thinking about what she wanted it to do. Slowly, she saw it change until it looked like a large peach colored topaz, glinting in the soft torchlight. She was concerned that the Fae might not be interested in it, but she decided to wait and see what would happen before trying a different plan.

Minutes passed until finally the Dark One noticed the strange-looking fruit. He narrowed his eyes and looked around, but went up to it and picked it up cautiously. He drew the fruit in close and sniffed at it. Finally, he was apparently satisfied with the offering and took a bite. Sarah sucked in a breath, hoping that it would work. At first, nothing seemed amiss. Then, just as she had accepted the fact that she'd have to think of something else, the Dark Fae transformed. She wasn't sure what the creature would turn into, but she certainly wasn't expecting the sinister bat-like animal which was now fluttering low to the ground. She also wasn't prepared for her reaction to said fluttering. With a flash and a snap, she'd rushed forward and caught the evil little thing in her jaws, swallowing it in two bites. Immediately, she felt sick with the knowledge that she'd eaten the foul thing, but then she panicked when she began to wonder if she'd eaten the key too. She looked around and breathed a sigh of relief as she spotted the metal object lying under the table. She gently picked it up with her mouth and headed back down the stairs. _Note to self, Sarah, no more eating animals of any kind!_ She thought. She only hoped that the critter in her stomach wouldn't give her indigestion.


	9. Assault on the Fortress

**A.N. -** So after a month long hiatus due to lack of internet, I've brought everyone another chapter in this story. There's plenty of action and a bunch of magic and Sarah gets into some deep water. I hope everyone enjoys this update!

Assault on the Fortress

The sun shone brightly overhead as the goblin and troll forces gathered at the base of the mountain which held the Ebon Fortress. "Wouldn't it be better to attack at dusk?" King Roac had asked.

"The Dark Fae don't like the sun very much, which means we'll have the advantage of them," Jareth had replied. He then turned to Ludo and said, "We need a tunnel starting from here and ending up in the lower recesses of the fortress. With any luck we'll end up near the dungeons but as long as we're in the bowels of the building, we should be able to sneak around without raising the alarm along with the entire Dark Fae army."

"Ludo understand," the giant, red-furred creature answered. And with a soft keen that gently rose, the rocks began to obey Ludo's call.

Jareth said, "This will take some time so we'll need scouts to make sure we've not been spotted."

"I'll take care of that. Trolls are the best scouts after all."

As Roac went to gather his scouts, the group of humans approached Jareth. Karo asked, "What would you have us do, Your Majesty?"

"We'll need weapons just in case. Perhaps you can gather wood and make spears?"

"Of course." As the group went off to get the wood, clouds began to roll in. "Looks like a thunder storm is headed our way. I don't know if we'll be able to fashion any sort of weapons in a timely manner," Karo commented.

"Put the wood on the ground," Toby said. Curious, Karo did as the boy asked. Toby looked at the pieces of wood and concentrated. Then, before Karo's eyes, the wood magically transformed into spears.

"Alright, Toby! You just saved us some time, my friend." Toby grinned. The humans joined back up with the rest of the group.

Tess approached Jareth and asked, "Your Majesty, what should we do with Toby while we try to get inside of the Fortress?"

Jareth looked down at the boy then replied, "I'll have Brok take him back to the castle."

"No!" Toby cried. "I want to help my sister!"

Jareth smiled, saying, "Toby, it's much too dangerous for you to go with us. I don't think your sister would be very happy with me should something befall you."

"Just because I'm young doesn't mean I can't do anything. It's not fair!"

A grin broke out on the Goblin King's face. "Oh how like your sister you are. Very well, Toby, you may go with us on one condition. You must be near an adult at all times and should you feel that you are in danger, you are to take the nearest adult and hide."

Toby nodded wide-eyed. "I can do it, I know I can!"

Ludo's voice was heard at that moment, saying, "Ludo almost done. Only a little ways to the other side."

"Find King Roac," Jareth ordered Brok. When the trolls returned everyone gathered in a circle. "Alright, we have one shot at this, so everyone be on your guard. Once we're in the lower section of the Fortress, I want everyone to split into groups of ten. I'll give each group a crystal to communicate with. Once the dungeon is found, all you have to do is tap the crystal and it will not only notify the other groups, but it will also lead us to where you are. Is everyone agreed?" The consensus was unanimous and everyone went silent as they entered the tunnel Ludo had built. At that same moment, the rain began to fall. The tunnels were dark and damp, and the company wondered how far it would be before they got to the end. After about half an hour, the tunnel sloped upwards until they were practically climbing.

Ludo spoke, "We near end. Stand back." They all did as he requested, as he called out to the rocks. The ground shook, but fortunately only a small amount of debris was coming down, for he was making the rocks move out away from the group. Finally, there was light. "We through."

One by one, they all carefully crawled out of the hole. And as they took stock of the room they were in, Jareth froze. "Ludo, where did you bring us out at?"

"Should be lower level, like you asked." But it wasn't the lower level at all. If Jareth were to take a guess, this was at perhaps ground level to the entrance of the Fortress, because they had found themselves in a large dining room. A shrieking sound made everyone tense up.

"They've sounded an alarm!" Vandorian cried out.

"We fight then!" King Roac said.

"Everyone get in a circle with your weapons pointed out," Jareth ordered. Soon, the Dark Ones came rushing through the doors and the battle was on. The group was holding their own, even though the Dark Ones outnumbered them. Jareth felt a drop of water on his face and glanced up. The ceiling was leaking, and badly at that. "King Roac!" he shouted above the noise. "We've got a problem; there's someone trying to take this building down by magic, but we're in it!"

Roac saw what Jareth had noticed and replied, "Shit, it must be the druid, Dravia! She must have noticed what we were trying to do and is attempting to help us."

Dravia was an orc druid Jareth knew well. She rarely got involved with situations like this, but when she did, you could bet that there would be hell to pay for someone, for her magic was powerful. "I suppose if we live through this, we'll have to thank her," he remarked.

Toby saw what was going on. He wanted to help, but he felt powerless being so young and small. "Ugh, I wish I was bigger," he grumbled.

There was a flash of glitter which drew Jareth's attention. Suddenly, it looked as though a new person had joined the group, for there was a young man with sandy blonde hair and big blue eyes standing with them. "Toby, is that you? What did you do?"

Toby seemed stunned by his transformation, but then he grinned and said, "I got my wish! I can do something now!" And with that proclamation, he reached out his hands towards the ceiling. Boards of wood appeared out of nowhere, sticking to the ceiling like glue. "That should buy us some time to get the heck out of here!" he cried out.

"What about Jinelle and the others?" Dres asked.

"We'll try to find them on our way out," Jareth replied. So they all moved as a unit, keeping the remaining Dark Ones at bay as they found the stairwell. The boards above them groaned with the weight of water that was building up as they ran. "We'd better hurry up, too!" They managed to reach the lower levels when they heard a loud crack, then a roar.

"It's too late!" Hoggle cried out. "Ludo, we needs a way out, now!"

Ludo shuffled to the side of the building and made a barking type of sound, then a long rumble of noise. In front of the group, a huge boulder smashed through the wall.

"Quickly, everyone!" Jareth yelled.

"What about Sarah?" Hoggle asked him.

"Once the water's out, we can look for them." So they all leaped out of the building, and not a minute too soon as the water gushed forth, down the corridor, while some of it burst through the hole they'd just made. They had to wait a few minutes for the water to subside, but when it did, they all ran back into the building, sloshing through the remnants of the flood as they made their way. They came across an entrance that had been pushed open with the water, the reinforced door lay some feet away. "This must be it," Jareth said, "Spread out and see if you can find any trace of them."

"Where did the dark ones go?" asked Van.

"They retreated, probably to regroup somewhere else," Roac answered.

"This will be a great setback for them. Felruun will be furious and will probably retaliate," Brok pointed out.

"We'll deal with Felruun in good time," Jareth commented. The water was several feet deep, due to the shape of the area.

Finally, Tess called out, "Over here!" They all ran to her, standing in a large room with battered cages strewn about. "It looks like they were either taken somewhere else before this, or they escaped."

"Guys, come here!" Toby cried. They went over to him where he pointed down in the water. It was a key.

"So it looks like they got out on their own after all," Dres commented.

"The question is, was Sarah with them?" Jareth pondered. "Well, we've no time to figure out how they got out, I'm sure my sister will lead them back to the castle. We'll need to go back there and regroup." So they all headed back out to the hole in the side of the building. Jareth was taking up the rear of the group this time, when he felt a strange pull. It was a similar sensation as when someone wished away a child, only slightly different, and he couldn't ignore it, he had to go where it was pulling him towards. "Dres!" he called out to his cousin, who turned to look at him. "Lead the others to the Goblin Castle, I'll meet you there. There's something else I must attend to first."

"Alright, be careful!" Dres responded. And with that taken care of, Jareth vanished in a cloud of glitter.

Down in the dungeon, Sarah had the key in her mouth as she squeezed through the cage which held Princess Jinelle. Sarah placed the key in Jinelle's hand and the young princess then hurried to the cage door, opening the lock. "Let her out too," Sarah said, nodding her head towards Katiana.

"You – you would let me out even though I wasn't that nice to you?" the troll asked.

"Of course. Just because you were a bit snarky towards me doesn't mean I want to leave you to rot down here."

"Besides," Jinelle added, "you did say that if we could get out of here we could work together."

Katiana grinned and replied, "So I did. You know what, you're both okay in my book." Jinelle undid her lock, then went over to Sir Didymus and released him as well.

Sir Didymus instantly grabbed Sarah up in a hug, laughing, "It's so strange to be human, but I'm glad you're with me, my Lady."

"So how do you two know each other?" Jinelle asked.

"Do you not know who this is?" Sir Didymus asked. Sarah began to protest that it wasn't necessary to fill the princess in, but the knight ignored her. "This is the Lady Sarah, Champion of the Labyrinth."

Jinelle whipped her head around to face Sarah. "_You're _the one who broke my brother's heart?"

"What? Hey, hey, wait a minute. _He's_ the one who wouldn't give my brother back, even though I asked nicely. I thought he was going to turn Toby into a goblin, for goodness sakes. I was only fifteen, and I thought it was all a trick, part of the game. He thought that just because he's handsome that he could seduce me just like that, hah!"

Jinelle smirked, a knowing glint in her eyes. "You like him, don't you?"

"I haven't seen him in over three years. I don't know what I think of him. Now, we don't have time for this, we have to go." Jinelle decided to let the matter go. After all, Sarah was right. But the princess knew she'd bring up the subject again, for her brother needed closure on the matter. It was then that the four escapees heard a large crack resonate from somewhere above, then a roar. "What was that?" Squeaking near her caught Sarah's attention and she looked down only to find Simon the rat at her feet.

"You've got to get out of here!" Simon was saying.

"Hey, you came back," Sarah said, grinning.

"Of course I came back! That druid Dravia's gonna bring the whole fortress down!"

"Who's Dravia?"

Since the others couldn't understand Simon, Katiana frowned, and answered, "She's a druid that lives around here. She's on our side. Why do you ask?"

But Simon knew they didn't have time for explanations. "She's gonna flood the place! That roar you hear is the water coming!"

"Oh no! Guys, Simon says this place is gonna flood! We have to move!"

"The guard room is a dead end and we can't use the main door because the whole Dark Fae army will be waiting, because trust me when I say that the alarm has been raised already," Katiana said.

"What should we do, my Lady?" Sir Didymus asked.

"We'll have to go out the way I came in. It might be tight, but it's our only choice." So all five of them crawled into the drainage tunnel. They hurried as fast as they could, with Simon riding on Sarah's back. As they reached the fork in the tunnel system, they heard the rush of water upon them. "Hold on!" Sarah yelled. The water was strong and fast, and they all screamed as it whipped them about. Sarah was trying to keep her head above water as best she could, while Simon grabbed onto her ears. At one point, she tried to look around but didn't see anyone. "I think we got separated from the others!" She couldn't do anything about that though, for she was at the mercy of the water. Suddenly, she hit a dead end and the water was filling up the space fast around her. She tried to swim back out into the tunnel but the current wouldn't let her.

"We're trapped!" Simon cried.

Panic set in finally. What options did she have? She tried to reach for her magic but she almost drowned when she concentrated on it. She and Simon were now coughing and gasping for air as their heads were at the ceiling, with little breathing room left. In desperation, Sarah called out, "Jareth!"

Jareth popped out and was immediately enclosed in water. He held his breath as he looked around. Wherever he was, it was small and tight and he didn't have much time to figure out what had pulled him here. Then, he spotted a bit of color. He swam over to a shape in the water and realized it was some sort of animal. Without thought, he grabbed a hold of it and transported himself to the castle. Back on solid ground, he gasped for air. He looked at the animal in his hands and realized that not only was it a fox, but that there was a rat on top of the fox's head as well. "What on earth?" he mused out loud. Both animals were drenched and while the rat was coming to, the fox was breathing but still unconscious.

"Who are you?" he asked the rat.

"Si – cough, cough. Simon, your Majesty."

"And who is this then?" Jareth gestured to the fox.

"The Champion." Jareth was taken aback. No, it couldn't be. Perhaps the rat was simply feeling grateful to the fox for attempting to rescue him. He decided to wait until the fox woke up to ask it what had happened. "Why don't you come with me to the Goblin Castle, Simon?"

"As you wish, your Majesty. And by the way, thanks for saving us."

"All living creatures within the realm are my responsibility, and I would have been an awful ruler to let you both drown."

"Well, I'm just glad she remembered her right words, or in this case, name."

"So it is Sarah. Oh things will get interesting when she wakes up," Jareth smirked.


	10. Common Ground

**A.N.** - Alright so I'm sorry to all my followers for having such a delayed update, but I've got a lot going on in my life right now. First, I've started going to school again and having homework on top of daily household chores leaves me pretty exhausted at the end of the day. Secondly, my roommates and I had two of our pets taken out of our yard, and while we got one back, we're still searching for the other one. On top of that, I had a major brain freeze regarding this story; I just couldn't seem to figure how to work this chapter until it finally began to come to me in pieces. I'm fairly satisfied with the result as I now have a good idea of what will happen next. So hopefully you guys won't have to wait so long for the next update. I hope everyone enjoys and I really appreciate all of your reviews!

Common Ground

Bright light shown on her eyes, making her try to scrunch her lids to block it out. She felt warm and safe and she didn't want to wake up to the stark reality that she was probably dead. Finally, she knew that her attempts at falling back to sleep were futile and she finally opened her eyes. The first thing she saw were rock walls and large windows, which were the source of the light. Then she noticed the decor. Silver candlesticks, velvet tapestries, and ornate china vases were a few of the things which caught her eye. She thought then that maybe she wasn't dead after all, unless Heaven was a castle. She groaned out loud, wondering just where the heck she was. Suddenly, she was attacked by hugs.

"Sarah! Ye're alive!"

Recognition finally filtered through her brain. "Hoggle! Oh my gosh, I've missed you!" she cried out, hugging the dwarf back and noticing something at the same time. "Crap, I'm still a fox."

"Yeah I was wonderin' about that."

"Long story, I'm afraid. So how have you been?"

Hoggle snorted, "Other than bein' exiled from the Labyrinth, I've been alright." When he saw her eyes narrow, he didn't hesitate to add, "Don't worry, I've been readmitted and so has Ludo. We were part of the party helping to find you and the Princess."

"Are the Princesses okay? And what about Sir Didymus?"

"They're all fine, though Sir Didymus might be enjoyin' his human status a bit much. He's paradin' around like some kind of hero, lettin' the ladies fawn all over him."

Sarah giggled. "That sounds like Didymus all right." Sarah finally took a moment to really look around the room she was in. She guessed that she was in the Goblin Castle but how did she get here, and more importantly, did Jareth know about her yet? That was when she realized what she had been laying on. "Hoggle, am I on a _dog bed_?"

"Er, so you are. I wouldn't take offense to it though. You are a furry creature at the moment."

Just then, Brok walked down the hallway. "Lady Sarah, you are requested in the dining room as soon as you're able."

"I'm glad to see you're alright, Brok. Where is my brother?"

She saw Brok shift a bit before he replied, "He is down in the dining room as well. But he has undergone a change as well, just so you're prepared." And with that, Brok left.

"Is Toby alright?" Sarah asked Hoggle.

"Sure he is. He's just...bigger. Now we'd better get down to the dining area." So Hoggle led the way, while Sarah followed.

"This place is a lot nicer than the last time I was here," she commented.

Hoggle laughed, replying, "That's cause the last time ya were here, ya wasn't payin' attention ta the castle. Ya was worried about Toby." Sarah nodded, knowing this was true.

As they rounded a corner, they came upon two large, gilded doors which were open. Through those doors lay a long, oval table, made of ebony wood and carved with various mythical creatures which probably weren't mythical in the Underground. On one side of the table, Sarah could see her human friends. Her eyes widened in recognition when she realized that the teenaged boy sitting next to Tessa was her brother. So that's what Hoggle had meant when he'd said Toby was bigger. For some reason, Sarah had envisioned he'd turned into a giant toddler. Sitting next to the humans were her friends, Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus, who was winking at Tessa. Tessa blushed and Sarah giggled to herself. On the other side of the table sat the two Princesses, a couple of young Fae men, and a group of trolls. It was then that Sarah finally cast her gaze upon the head of the table. There he sat, Jareth the Goblin King, looking regal and handsome. Her breath caught in her throat. Good grief was he sexy! How had she blatantly overlooked the fact that his golden hair just begged to be touched, or the fact that his lips appeared as if they would be able to devour her in the most sinful of ways? She gulped and told herself to get a grip. So, steeling herself, she walked into the room.

Everyone's attention turned to her and Sarah felt like the new kid at school. Then, Jareth spoke and his melodic voice brought back long-repressed desires within her. "Ah, our guest of honor has awoken finally. Welcome, Lady Sarah. I hope you are refreshed enough to be able to eat with us."

Sarah was in shock. Why was Jareth being so nice to her? Had he forgotten what had transpired between them the last time she was here? Or had he just forgotten who she was? Cautiously, she answered, "Thank you, Your Majesty. And yes, I am quite hungry. I do wonder though, how was it that I was brought here? The last thing I remember was being surrounded by water."

Jareth smiled, impressed by Sarah's manners. It appeared that she had grown up and had become much more appreciative of life. "Why, I brought you here. It seems that when you were about to drown, you called out for me, as my magic directed me to where you and your friend were."

Recollection shot through her. "I called you out by name, didn't I? I apologize for that, Your Majesty."

"No need to apologize. It's a rare thing to have one who has traversed the Labyrinth to not only find out my name, but to remember it as well years later. I'm flattered." So he did know who she was, to some extent. Was he trying to trick her by being nice? But what purpose would the tricking of her serve? She was not a Runner anymore. Perhaps Jareth acted the villain to all of his Runners. Brok had seemed to suggest such a thing, days ago. But Jareth hadn't acted like a villain the whole time she'd been in the Labyrinth, otherwise Sarah had an inkling that the peach would have had a different result than it did. "Why don't you sit down next to your brother?" Sarah couldn't help but notice that the seat also was next to Jareth.

"Are you sure you want me at the table? I'm not exactly...human at the moment."

"I'm fairly certain Ludo has more fur than you. Please, sit." This time, Sarah understood the implied order and did as he requested, though she had to jump up into the chair. "Now, let me make some introductions. Sarah, I believe you've already met my sister, Jinelle, as well as Princess Katiana. Next to them, in order, are my cousin Dreslin, Jinelle's fiance, Vandorian, and King Roac. Everyone, this is Lady Sarah, the girl who beat the Labyrinth."

There were gasps all around and Sarah became slightly nervous. "It can't be that big of a deal," she said. "There has to have been other Runners who've won, haven't there?"

Jareth's tone went soft as he replied, "No, there haven't. You were the only one."

"Oh." Sarah shifted, feeling uncomfortable. Finally she said, "Look, Ja- Your Majesty, I want to apologize for my behavior back then. I was being incredibly selfish and assumed the worst of you. I just want you to know that what you did for me changed my life and helped me to become the person I am today."

"That is a very generous gesture, Lady Sarah. Do not worry, I hold no ill will towards you. You were the only one who fought to get your loved one back, against all odds. That being said, I do accept your apology, for most don't understand the burden of my duty. Now, shall we eat?"

The dinner was the most delicious meal Sarah had ever had. Who knew that goblins could cook? She talked to Toby about what had happened while she was gone and was impressed by how much he'd been able to help the group. When he told her that he liked being bigger, she said that he needed to grow up normally so that he wouldn't miss out on all the things she had done growing up. She promised to help him figure out how to transform back. When dinner was over, King Roac spoke up. "As a token of my gratitude for Lady Sarah's help in bringing back my daughter safely, I award her a permanent sanctuary with the trolls. If ever she needs our assistance, we will do all that we can to help."

Sarah may not have known a lot about the Underground, but she realized that the king of the trolls probably didn't hand out such an honor lightly. "Thank you very much, I'm honored."

"Yeah, you're alright in my book, Foxy," Katiana grinned.

"I hate to change the subject, but what should we plan to do next?" Vandorian asked. "Surely Felruun will not take the loss of his prisoners lightly. Not to mention, the Ebon Fortress now has a weakness."

"No, you're correct about that, Van," Jareth replied. "I've been hearing rumors that the Dark Ones have been reinforcing the area around Muckbog. I have a chart with some details of when the area was last scouted but I don't know what new traps or defenses they might have. I intend to take my information to the Fae Council, which meets in a day from tomorrow. King Roac, I would like you to join me at the council. Many other races will be there as well. I've even heard that the Naga will be there."

"The Dark Ones have reached the desert then?" asked Dres.

"It would seem so."

Karo spoke up. "May we come as well?"

Jareth fixed his gaze upon the older man, then nodded, saying, "Yes, I believe that the rest of the Underground needs to see that the mortal realm is as affected as ours. In fact, you may be among the last remaining humans. As you know, most mortals can't contend with magic. Well, I believe we should all get some rest since we'll have to travel to the Crystal Castle tomorrow. Everyone will shown to their room. Good night." With that, Jareth left the room, leaving Sarah befuddled. He had been nice to her, even forgiving her for what had transpired between them the last time. Then why did she feel so empty when he left the room? Had he not given much thought about her since she'd won the challenge? Why was he being so distant? She even found herself missing his sarcastic remarks.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice at her feet. "I can show you where your room is, Lady Sarah."

"Simon! I'm so glad to see you alive!" she cried out, trying to hug him with her paws.

"Hey, none of that now, I have a reputation, you know!" the rat protested. "Are you gonna follow me or not?"

"Sure, I'm coming." As they went up the stairs, along with the others, Sarah asked him, "So do you have family?"

"Are you kidding, I'm a rat! My family is so huge that they've scattered across the kingdom. However, I do have relatives living in the Goblin Castle so I'll probably be staying with them for a while."

Sarah laughed but then she couldn't speak when the doors opened to her room. The room itself appeared to be situated in a portion of a turret, for it was round. The floors were covered in various exotic rugs, there was an ornate cherry wood dresser with an oval mirror on top, a matching vanity with a tall silver jewelry box, tapestries adorned the walls, a large sleigh bed made out of mahogany with silk sheets and comforter, and there were two large windows looking out over the Goblin City and the Labyrinth beyond. Stunned, she walked into her room, wanting to touch and pick up everything, but not able to reach the high surfaces. She noticed a curved entrance-way on the right side of her room which led to a bathroom complete with a silver sink, silver toilet, and a silver, claw-footed tub. "This is so amazing," she breathed out, walking to the window and taking in the view. A stray thought popped into her head before she could stop it. Why would Jareth provide her with such a room if she meant nothing to him? Or did all of his guests receive such lavish quarters? And most importantly, since when did she care whether she meant anything to him? Sarah was beginning to wonder whether Jareth meant more to her than she had realized.

What Sarah didn't realize was that Jareth's own bedroom was right down the hall from his, when everyone else was in another wing. He paced in his room, the moonlight gleaming off of his body, for Jareth didn't feel the need to sleep in clothing. He felt restless. Today had not gone at all as he had expected. The Sarah that he had known was different. Gone was the defiance. In it's place had come respect and Jareth's plans to mildly tease and torment her had flown out the window. He couldn't in all good consciousness take up the game where they had left off, not when she had been so polite to him. Not only that, she had been sincerely sorry about her behavior when she was younger. The fact that she'd remembered his name to call for help gave him hope, but perhaps she merely was good at remembering names. He'd watched her throughout the dinner, hoping to pick up any clue that she might think of him romantically, but had gotten nothing. She may not believe him to be the villain anymore, but she was hiding any other feelings she might have as well. That was why he had also decided to play close to the vest regarding his own feelings. He had gained her friendship, but he wanted more, he'd always wanted more with her. It was just so frustrating that he needed to concentrate on defeating the Dark Ones right now, or he would have marched right into her bedroom and seduced her. Though perhaps that wasn't the best idea right now anyway, seeing as how she was humanly challenged right now. He didn't even know what she looked like at the moment. All he had to go on was his memory of her, and even that was making his desire grow. What he needed to do was read a book and try to get some rest. The next few days were going to be long indeed.


	11. Complications

**A.N. - **Happy Labor Day everyone! So this chapter is more of a filler, not too much action, and hopefully it doesn't drag too much, but I don't think it will as I certainly enjoyed writing it. Thank you to all who have reviewed and to all followers of this story! Enjoy!

Complications

Sarah found herself outside, surrounded by tents and colorful people. She recognized that she was at a renaissance faire, something she enjoyed attending if she had the cash. She clapped at the jugglers, marveled at the magicians, and cheered for the fire-eaters. Then she spotted it, the fortune teller's tent. She grinned and entered. The fortune teller was not an old woman, but a young girl with dark tresses and sparkling green eyes. "Ah, I was expecting you," the fortune teller said. "Have a seat, please." Sarah did as she was told. "So, what can I do for you today? Perhaps you'd like to speak to a family member who's departed? Is it money that you crave?" The girl seemed to study Sarah for a minute before a knowing smile crossed her face. "No, I know what you seek. Love, am I right?"

"I suppose so."

"Of course I am. Now don't worry, just relax, I'll find out everything you need to know." The fortune teller closed her eyes, concentrating. After a few minutes, a frown graced her face, then she opened her eyes again, saying, "This is strange. Some other magic is counter-acting my own. I'm sorry, but I can't read your future." And with that, the girl disappeared.

Before disappointment could make it's way through Sarah, another, male voice came from the dark of the tent. "She may not be able to tell you your future, but I can."

The slightly arrogant tone made Sarah shiver in anticipation as the man stepped out of the shadows. "Jareth, what are you doing here?"

"Why telling you what you want to know, Precious." He stepped right up next to her in one smooth movement, and brought his gloved hand to caress her face.

She closed her eyes and leaned in slightly to his touch, but then remembered herself and opened her eyes again, saying, "I don't understand. What could you know about my future?"

"Perhaps I can show you instead." With that, he leaned in and kissed her on the lips. Sarah felt herself go limp, even though she could sense that she was kissing him back. He tasted like the wilds of the jungle and she felt as if she were flying. When the kiss ended, she was dizzy. He grinned at her. "If this - if I - am what you want, Sarah, you only have to do one thing."

"What's that?" she asked, finally finding her voice.

"Accept this gift," he replied, conjuring a glass sphere in the palm of his hand. "It's a crystal, nothing more, but if you turn it this way, it will show you your dreams."

"You've offered me my dreams before, as a reward for letting you keep Toby."

"Are you sure that's why I offered this gift to you?"

"Well – no, I'm not so certain about that anymore."

"Aren't you curious, Precious? Besides, dear Toby is in no danger from me anymore."

He was right, she thought, there was no reason for him to lure her this time. She reached out to touch the crystal, and turned it slightly. It spun in place, transforming into a succulent peach. Instinctively, she brought the peach to her lips and bit down. The taste was sweeter than her grandmother's cobbler, and when she looked up again, she realized that she had been transported to a very familiar room. There were mirrors surrounding her and people dressed up wearing various masks. Sarah looked down at herself and saw the same white gown she'd had on the previous time she'd eaten a peach that Jareth had given her. This time, though, Jareth was already by her side. "Are you ready, Sarah?" he asked.

"For what?"

"Why, to be the Goblin Queen."

Shock startled Sarah awake, her heart beating fast. It had been so vivid! She cursed her emotions from the other day and meeting her old nemesis again for the content of her dream. Why did he have to affect her so?! All she wanted to do was not be his enemy anymore, but it seemed that her heart and body had other ideas. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock on the door, then Jinelle's voice calling out, "Sarah, are you awake?"

"Yeah, yeah, come in," she mumbled, still groggy.

The princess shimmied through the door, closing it behind her, then turned to Sarah, her mouth open and about to say something, but she promptly shut it, her eyes going wide. "Wow," she finally said, "I've never seen this room before, but I've heard my brother speak about it. So you really are the one who defeated him at his own game?"

Sarah decided she didn't want to know what the purpose of the room was, for she didn't want anything to color her mind to what she should think about Jareth. They'd seemed to forge an alliance last night and she would be damned if she was going to ruin that by letting old, bad habits rear their ugly heads. "Uh, yeah, but hey, that was four years ago and I was a pretty spoiled brat back then."

Jinelle laughed and Sarah found herself smiling sheepishly back at her. "No, you've got it all wrong. I'm glad you won. It had been high time that someone put his ego in place." The Fae woman had a twinkle in her eyes that spoke of mischief. But then she noticed something else that had slipped her normally observant gaze completely. "Hey, you're back! You're gorgeous too; no wonder he acted the way he did."

"What?" Sarah was confused for a minute, then caught the movement of her hands down at her lap. _My hands!_ She thought excitedly. Without thought, she leaped out of the bed and ran over to a mirror. She pinched herself for good measure, but it wasn't a dream. She was human again! She cheered out loud and jumped up and down, hugging herself, when she realized something. _Holy crap, I'm naked!_

It was like one of those nightmares you have right before a big test in school, or a speech in front of an audience. Sarah heard the bedroom door open but by the time the sound registered in her ears, it was too late. "Lady Sarah, are you al - ," came Jareth's deep voice.

Panic infused Sarah as she turned sharply to face him, bringing up her arms to cover herself as much as possible, and feeling her face get hot. "Jeez, don't you knock?!" she cried.

Jareth had been speechless. He had had his fair share of women before, and the Fae were generally comfortable enough in their own skin not to care too much about the sight of nude flesh unless it involved a sexual encounter. This however, was an animal of a different color entirely. She was beautiful, more beautiful than he could remember her being, and he wondered for a moment if he'd just forgotten her beauty. But she had been a child when he'd last seen her, he reminded himself, and she was definitely all woman now. The spark in her green eyes when she chastised him stirred something else familiar as well. So, she had not changed entirely, she was merely controlling her emotions better. Oh, the game was back on, and this time, Jareth was playing for keeps. A smirk crossed his features as he said, "And why should I knock in my own castle? I wish I had known you were enjoying a clothing-optional moment, for I would have joined you. I still can, if you want, you know."

Sarah's mouth gaped open for a second, before she snapped it shut, retorting, "That really _won't_ be necessary! I was just about to get dressed, for your information, so please leave."

"As you wish. I look forward to seeing more of you later, Precious." The innuendo laced in his tone made Sarah blush even more, and she felt warmth spread to other areas of her body as well.

As soon as he was gone, she turned to Jinelle who was holding her sides as she giggled. "Was he serious just now?! How could he act like that in front of his sister?"

Jinelle just shook her head and answered, "It's no big deal. We're a pretty open-minded race when it comes to sex."

"Unbelievable," Sarah muttered, but couldn't help the smile that was fast growing on her face. He'd called her by that nickname again, for the first time since she'd been in the castle. She also couldn't help the feeling of pride that swelled within her at the thought that he'd found her attractive enough to flirt with.

"What will you wear today?" Jinelle asked.

"I'm not sure. What should I wear?"

"Definitely something pretty. We're going to see the Fae Council after all, and you need to make a good first impression." Jinelle rummaged around in the wardrobe, then gave a cry of glee as she whisked out an armful of glittery blue and green material. "This one! It will go with your eyes so well!"

"Alright, I'll try it," Sarah replied, trying to sound nonchalant when really she was giddy with excitement. It was like playing dress-up all over again. She managed to get it over her head, but she needed help fastening the corset top.

When it was all tied together, Jinelle said, "Before you look in the mirror, I want to do your hair."

"Thanks, that's really nice of you!"

"Well, you're the first friend I've had that hasn't had an agenda of some sort. The Fae are usually a self-centered breed. Not that we're all like that, it's just a tendency we have."

_You don't say,_ Sarah smirked to herself, thinking of a certain Goblin King. "You've been very nice to me so far, so I don't think you're self-centered."

Jinelle grinned as she finished Sarah's hair. "There, you're all done! My brother's jaw will drop when he sees you."

"I'm pretty sure that just happened a few minutes ago," Sarah laughed. She went to the mirror again and was stunned. Surely this wasn't her; there must be a mistake and the mirror was enchanted or something. Now Sarah had never had issues with how her body looked, but the woman staring back at her now was ethereal. Swaths of green and blue formed the skirt, while the corset was comprised of a teal color and made of silk. Glitter accented throughout and the decolletage, while suggestively low, was not too revealing. Jinelle had put Sarah's hair up into a half ponytail, with the rest down and all of it was twisted into loss curls. "Wow, you did a really good job. I don't even recognize myself!"

Jinelle nodded in satisfaction. Just then, there came another knock on the door. "Are you two ready yet?" It was Katiana. Sarah looked wistfully at the troll princess' outfit, which was comprised of a pair of gray leather breeches, a matching vest, and a silver colored undershirt.

"That looks infinitely more comfortable to wear than this dress," Sarah commented.

"Yeah, that's cause I don't care what the locals think about me."

"I don't care what they think either, I just didn't know what the dress code was."

Katiana was about to suggest that she could find something else for Sarah to wear, but when she caught the glare that Jinelle was giving her, she said, "You're fine. You clean up nice, Foxy."

The women finally made it out into the hallway, where they ran into Tess and Sir Didymus. "Sarah, you're back!" Tess called out gleefully. "Nice dress, by the way!"

"Thanks, you don't look so shabby yourself!" Sarah commented, noting her friend's simple silk gown that had hues of wine and amber in it, which accented Tess' auburn hair. Then Sarah frowned as she noted, "Sir Didymus, why are you still human? I figured that since I was transformed back that you would be as well."

The knight shrugged. "I'm not certain, My Lady, other than that perhaps the magic which affects me did not originate with you."

"There's another possibility," came a voice from behind the group.

Sarah turned and smiled, saying, "Brok, I'm glad to see you again! But what do you mean?"

Brok sighed, replying, "Well a human isn't supposed to use magic, Lady Sarah, it's just not in their nature to be able to do that. So by having and using this gift, you, and your brother as well, are not as familiar with the inherent rules. By proxy, that means that on occasion, there may be a price to the magic you use."

"A price...such as Sir Didymus not being able to turn back into a fox again?"

"It's possible."

"How do we find out whether it was my magic that was the culprit, so to speak? And if it was, then is there another way to turn him back?"

"I'm not sure. You'd have to talk to one of the Fae to get that answer."

Sarah half turned to Jinelle, but the princess threw up her hands, saying, "Sorry, I've never had experience with that type of thing. I mean, I use magic, but it's small in comparison with my brother's."

Sarah sighed to herself. Great, yet another thing she would have to talk to Jareth about. But perhaps she could set some boundaries with him and it wouldn't be so frustrating. She wouldn't let today's encounter in the bedroom, nor last night's dream, sway her feelings towards him. _Yeah, sure. You keep telling yourself that._


	12. Arrival

**A.N. -** Okay so a bit of a crazy month, but hopefully this chapter will begin to answer some questions that some of you have posed. I will hopefully be posting the next chapter this coming weekend, as I know most of you have been terribly patient with me on my updates. Hope you all enjoy!

Arrival

Sarah and her human friends gaped at the Crystal Castle rising from the land. "All my life I dreamed of living in a fantasy story, and I've been lucky enough to have it happen twice," she murmured.

"So I take it you didn't completely hate your time in my maze," Jareth quipped, smirking.

Sarah shook her head, smiling. Jinelle had been right about the dress and in fact, Jareth had barely left her side during the journey. "I never hated it, I was just frustrated because I just wanted to find Toby. Your distractions were always amusing, though."

Jareth shrugged, replying, "Part of the job description, I'm afraid."

"No, you're misunderstanding me. I looked forward to our little confrontations, as it were. I'd never had an adult treat me like an equal and you not only did that, but you also made me feel -." She trailed off, not wanting to delve into territory that might not be welcome.

"Feel what, exactly?" He asked lowly and she squirmed at the intimacy in the sound of his voice.

"Attractive, smart, and mature. I fancied myself a princess back then."

"And I was your villain."

She frowned, replying, "Only because you had to be. I didn't understand because I was too young to really comprehend, but I believe I understand now. But you did exile my friends. Why?"

His answer came swiftly. "They disobeyed me and there had to be consequences. I couldn't let them go unpunished, for if word had gotten around that they had, I might have lost control of my subjects and eventually, my kingdom."

"Oh. Is that why you were mean to Hoggle too?"

Jareth laughed. "No, I enjoyed riling that dwarf up because it provided me a source of entertainment. I never actually wished him ill. Well, perhaps once."

His face went blank on his last comment, but Sarah decided not to press him. Instead, she said, "It sounds like a very hard job, running a kingdom of goblins."

"Indeed. But don't get me wrong, Sarah, I did not enjoy having to exile your friends. I let them celebrate with you the night that you defeated my game and even let them continue to communicate with you after their exile."

Shock filled Sarah at this knowledge as she realized that he was right. She'd been able to talk to her Labyrinth friends through the mirror for years before the Dark Ones' influence had disrupted the link through her mirror. "Why?"

A peculiar expression crossed his face briefly before it was replaced by nonchalance, so quickly in fact that she wasn't able to discern it. "I suppose it was because I admired you for winning, and I felt that being able to talk to those who had assisted you was a fitting reward."

"And here I always thought my reward was getting my brother back," she laughed lightly, trying to ease the mood. "I do thank you though. Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus helped me get through some rough patches."

"Your welcome." And for the first time since Sarah had seen him again, she felt that Jareth was truly someone she could trust.

As the party reached the doors of the castle, Jareth dismounted his horse, saying, "Humans are generally not allowed here, so let me do the talking. However, if one of you is asked a question, it would be wise to answer it."

"What if the questions are of a personal nature?" Karo asked.

"If the question is too uncomfortable or personal, then come find me."

Just then, the large doors opened and a tall, elegant woman stepped out, smiling. "Welcome guests, to the Crystal Castle. I am Queen Liselle." Everyone bowed or curtseyed out of respect.

"Hello, Mother," Jareth said in greeting. "Let me introduce you to those you haven't met yet." He gestured to the trolls, saying, "This is King Roac, his daughter Katiana, and the rest of his tribe."

Queen Liselle curtseyed to them and said, "Thank you all for coming. We need all the allies we can get."

"I'm glad you think that, for these humans are here to help as well," Jareth continued. "This is a small group of survivors who found their way into our lands."

Liselle's eyes opened wide in surprise, but managed to reign in her features quickly. "Well, this is quite unusual, but most refreshing indeed. We've never had mortals in our halls before." She looked over the humans, appraising each one. The old man seemed wise, the younger ones appeared eager to help and she couldn't help but smile at the thought that youth transcended all types of creatures. Then she caught site of the young woman with black hair and green eyes that blazed determination. She was beautiful, but beyond that, there was an unconquered spirit residing in her. Liselle said, "Well, won't you all come in, please?"

The humans looked around in awe as they traversed the hallway, taking in the enormity of the place. Apparently it wasn't called the Crystal Castle for nothing, for the vast majority of the place was made out of the translucent rock, though there were various colors of it. Even the trolls were impressed. Once the group got to the reception room, Liselle stopped and told them, "The rest of the Council will be here shortly, so I will have someone take you to your rooms. Feel free to get refreshed, but don't take too long as you will all need to be at the luncheon. Your attendants will wait fifteen minutes for you, then take you to the luncheon room."

The humans looked confused, but Jinelle approached them, saying, "The luncheon is where the Council will convene and talk. This is when we will be able to plan."

"That's interesting," Tessa commented. "Back where we were from, meetings and lunch didn't generally coincide."

"We've found that eating creates a better atmosphere." Everyone began walking to their rooms.

Meanwhile, Liselle approached Jareth. "Welcome back, my son, I'm glad you all made it safely. I'm surprised that you brought mortals with you."

Jareth grinned, replying, "What you mean is that you're concerned about the mortals being here."

"I'm just unsure how the other Fae will react to them."

"Don't worry about the mortals, they're here to help us, and even though they have no magic, I will be willing to bet that they'll be more useful than we might believe." Jareth fixed Liselle with a grim face, saying, "Mother, I believe these mortals are some of the only remaining survivors of this current situation. They have asked for my help and in return they are willing to help us."

"Is it because there are two mortals who are Fae marked?"

"That has been taken into account, yes."

"So who are they, the Fae marked ones?"

Jareth knew that he couldn't avoid the question, for his mother was as stubborn as he. He resigned himself and replied, "Lady Sarah, the Champion, and her brother."

Liselle was not often shocked, but she was at this moment. "She found her way back to you?"

"It would seem so."

"Is she still human?"

"Yes, for the moment. She and her brother are already exhibiting magical powers. I don't believe they will be Fae, though I'm not sure what they will end up becoming."

"And where will they live, once this war is won?"

"With me, of course. After all, I am the one who marked them."

Both Liselle and Jareth turned around at the sound of Sarah's voice. "_You_? But why did you mark me, and for what purpose? Brok said that it's a kind of protection, but I don't understand why I would need protecting."

"It was for your protection, both you and your brother's. You've seen the darker side of our realm now, and even though the Dark Ones were not around during your trip through the Labyrinth, there are still creatures which could have harmed you," Jareth answered.

"Alright, but again, why us?"

"It is my duty to ensure the safety of all who fall under my domain, whether it be temporarily or permanent."

"Yes, I understand that, but why keep the protection on us after we left your domain?"

"Because you won the game, Sarah. By winning and getting your brother back, you started a chain of events which would have led both of you back to the Underground, Dark Ones or no. You would have begun to wield your magic in your own realm and other humans would have taken notice. I couldn't explain any of that to you back then though, because you essentially banished me from either talking to you or communicating with you in any way. Of course, once you came through the portal, that was made void."

"Wow. This is a lot to take in. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, I'm just overwhelmed by the information."

"I understand."

"So where is the luncheon room? I kind of ditched my guide," she said sheepishly. Sarah knew she had more questions, but she also knew that now was not the time to bring up personal issues.

"I'll take you there, Lady Sarah," Liselle offered. "It will give me the chance to get to know you."

As the two women walked, Sarah felt awkward and nervous. "I've never met a queen before," she said.

"Well don't worry, I won't bite," Liselle smirked.

Sarah laughed lightly as she remarked, "Now I know where your son gets his sense of humor."

"Are you still angry with him for taking your brother?"

"No, of course not. I know I believed your son to be at fault at the time because I knew I didn't mean to wish away Toby. As the months went by, however, I realized that it was all my doing. If I hadn't been so selfish in the first place, I wouldn't have almost lost my brother. There was an upside to doing that though."

"Oh, and what was that?"

"I never would have met Jareth in the first place. The challenge of the Labyrinth made me grow up and I'll always cherish the memories of my time in there."

"You speak so informally about my son. Were you two close?"

"Not so much. I had this idea of what and who he was, from the book I had, but other than that I barely knew him. I only speak informally because where I come from, we call most people we know by their first names. I need to remember to be more respectful here."

"So you weren't lovers?"

Sarah practically choked and turned beet red. "Good Lord, no! I was far too young for that sort of...intimacy. Besides, I don't think he was interested in me in that way."

"You've never been with a man, have you?" Liselle asked, eyes twinkling.

If Sarah could have blushed even more, she would have. "Well no, but I still have my whole life ahead of me. Most guys only want one thing anyways." _Except for Jareth_, her mind supplied her. Sure, he pretty much exuded sexuality, but he was more than just handsome. He was smart, clever really, and he seemed to enjoy conversing with her. He was confident and brave, and even though he had this whole arrogant persona, he cared about his people. Of course, he was still far too smug for his own good.


End file.
